FINISHED:

Urban, Linda. (2007). A crooked kind of perfect. Orlando, FL: Harcourt, Inc.

[Yeah, pretty much every praise for this one was spot on. A simple, breezy little tale about a girl, Zoe, who wants to play the piano but ends up having to play the organ instead. Her teacher says that Zoe is good enough to play in a nearby competition, so her agoraphobic father who spends his days taking at-home college courses, breaks out of his shell, and is forced to take her. Fun, interesting characters, including the town roughneck kid who ends up hanging out and baking with Zoe's father, and a harrowing scene with Zoe being invited to her ex-best friend's birthday party, by the girls mother (which, believe it or not, happened to me once!), and bringing socks when the party theme was shoes. Straightforward, with a heroine that will make you smile in sympathy and identification.]

STARTED:
Almond, David. (2008). The savage. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick.

[Reading to see if it should go on the Distinguished Books list.]

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